Today Scott and I met with Dr. Foulk, our fertility specialist, to talk about what went wrong with the most recent IVF treatment.

Dr. Foulk explained that he likes to determine what went wrong based off of three things…and here’s what he thinks:

1. Embryos: the embryos looked great when they were thawed, so that likely wasn’t the problem.

2. Uterus: the uterus looked good, so that likely wasn’t the problem either, especially since we waited a month after the egg retrieval to let my body calm down from the hyper-stimulation.

3. Luck: we just had bad luck this round.

We could go through everything again, just the same, but Dr. Foulk wants to do everything he can to improve our chances. This time he is going to give me a medication that will increase the receptors in my uterus for he embryo(s) to attach.

Dr. Foulk used this analogy to help us understand how the receptors and embryos work together — the receptors are like fibers on a carpet with round velcro circles on a carpet, and the embryos are like tennis balls bouncing around until they get caught on a velcro circle. This last time, it’s possible my uterus didn’t have enough receptors for the embryo to latch onto in time. This is hard to analyze or test before a transfer without a biopsy or removing parts of my tissue (which would cost more time and money).

To improve the chances for the next transfer to work, Dr. Foulk will inject, into my uterus, a growth hormone to increase the number of receptors (or strengthen the receptors, I can’t remember) in my uterus and then increase the chances for the embryo to latch on to the uterine wall. The research is based off the same idea when one is given growth hormone to increase their white blood cells when fighting infection.

Here are a couple links if you feel like reading more about the research Dr. Foulk has done:

This next time, with the increased receptors, we are hoping we will have increased/better luck and the embryos will both stick. One embryo has a 55% chance of taking. If we add two embryos then that increases the chances of at least one embryo taking from 55% to 75% chance. With increased chances of having more than one embryo plus the increased receptors, Dr. Foulk and we are very hopeful this next FET (frozen embryo transfer) will be successful.

Now for maybe a bit “TMI”, but it decides the timing for the next transfer: depending on when my period starts, it will determine when we do the transfer. If it starts on the 1st-3rd of December, we’ll do the transfer on December 23rd. If it starts on December 4th or later, we’ll do the transfer in January. The period cycle indicates when I have to start taking all the preparatory medications/shots to prepare my body for the transfer and there’s supposed to be close to two weeks from the start of my cycle to the day of the FET.

We love you all and can’t express how much we appreciate your love and support.

Words cannot express our love and appreciation for you all. Your prayers, thoughts, good vibes, whatever it may be, we felt so much support from each and every one of you.

Going through In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) and a Frozen Embryo Transfer (FET) is very hard physically and emotionally. It is so helpful having a support team. Whether you are family, friends, or an acquaintance, you are a part of our team. We could not do this alone, and you are a huge part of our life and story.

This morning I went in for the HCG blood draw, to find out if I was pregnant or not. The nurse told me that they would call me with the results in the afternoon.

Sadly, they called and told me that the test came back negative.

We have been full of frustration, confusion, anger, and devastation. I haven’t been able to talk much, but have been able to cry and scream. I know as the days go on things will get easier, but it will take some time.

As of now, we don’t know when we will continue with another round. We will be meeting with Dr. Foulk (our fertility specialist) this coming month on November 21st; we hope to learn more about what issues may have caused the FET to be unsuccessful and to learn what steps lie ahead.

Although this isn’t the result we were hoping and praying for, we believe it’s all in the Lord’s plan and timing…and we choose to accept that.

My dad shared a scripture with me that was perfect for the timing and situation today. “Wait on the Lord: be of good courage and he shall strengthen thine heart; wait, I say, on the Lord.” (Psalms 27:14)

Thank you again for being there for us. We are so grateful for all of your love and support.

Some of you may have seen this little video I made on one of my “Princess Days” last week after the transfer. The “Princess Days” were basically the post-op directions, which meant I had to be a couch potato. I didn’t complain about that…it is nice every now and then just sit around and read and watch a show or movie all day.

Here’s a small glimpse into what the day of the transfer was like for the two of us.

On Saturday we decided to take a drive to meet up with Scotts’s sister and her family in Midway. We went to the best creamery I’ve been to since living in Idaho…and I have been missing that amazing ice cream fresh from those creameries! After having a tasty little treat, we went and drove around looking at the beautiful homes there. My Goodness!!! I will admit it that I have a few dream home up there, and if Scott and I stay in Utah for the rest of our lives, we are moving to Midway!

After my Mom heard I was up in Midway/Heber not sitting at home on the couch being a “couch potato” she gave me those Mom eyes, we all now when we see them. Haha. So when I got home, I put her at ease by doing something she told me I needed to do every day to make those little embryos stick.

Now, we keep waiting until next week to find out if I am officially preggers. Yes…I feel like it is taking for-ev-er but soon enough the day will be here that we can’t wait for.

Frozen Embryo Transfer. That’s right! Next Thursday, October 20, is the BIG day!

That means I’m back on a schedule with all the medications again. To give you glimpse of everything that I’m using for the Frozen Embryo Transfer, here is everything…

Last week I started taking two estrogen shots a week, and that will continue. Tomorrow I’ll start taking a progesterone shot, which will continue daily. Then Sunday and Monday are big days with the Z-pack and steroids (those only go for a few days of next week). Then, it’s Thursday, the Transfer Day!

If things go well and the embryo(s) take – we are implanting two – I’ll continue shots for 10 more weeks. I know that’s a lot to keep doing, but it will all be worth it!

I still can’t believe that the transfer day is here! Just last month we were thinking we would transfer, and plans changed, for my health and a successful transfer. Now, it’s really happening and I’m getting all the butterflies about the whole thing every time I think about it. This is such a big step and will completely change our family and future. I am anxious to know how everything will go and what the end result will be.

I know this isn’t much for now, but next week it is a BIG week and I’ll share with you all as much as I possibly can!